Collar and tie form.



E. D. HOUSTON. COLLAR AND TIE FORM.

APPLICATION FILED DEC, 16, 1912.

Patented June 2, 1914.

0 1 05310;, Sumw waz EDWARD D. HOUSTON, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

COLLAR AND TIE FORM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 2, 1914.

Application filed December 16, 1912. Serial No. 736,912.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD D. Housron, a citizen of the United States, residing at lVorcester, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Collar and Tie Form, of which the following is a specification.

The principal objects of this invention are to provide a tie form which shall also serve the purpose of holding the collar in proper position and keeping the edges together; and to provide a construction for those purposes having an extreme degree of simplicity of design, construction and use.

Among the other objects of the invention are to provide a construction for these purposes having a white surface above the tie and below the top of the collar with the ap pearance of linen; in which only a small amount of the tie string at the neck is used in holding the tie or scarf; in which a small and graceful knot in the neck-scarf or tie can be made even by a person not especially careful in making the knot; in which both the collar and tie are absolutely adjusted to any position the wearer may desire; in which the materials will naturally adjust themselves to the form of a becoming knot even although the knot is tied by an ineX- perienced person; in which an adjustment of the desired shape can be made with extreme quickness and the whole device placed in the collar in a minimum of time and yet without causing a set appearance so that the tie will look like a made-up tie; and atthe same time to provide a construction for these purposes in which the cost of manufacture shall be reduced to a minimum, and in which there are few or no parts of metal and which can be cleaned very readily after use.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

Reference is to be had to theaccompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 is a front elevation of a tie and collar form constructed in accordance with this invention applied to an ordinary turndown collar and having a four-in-hand tie thereon; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a similar tie form removed from the collar and having a bow tie applied thereto and all ready to be inserted in the collar; Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the tie form shown in Fig. 1 by itself. Fig. l is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing a modification, and Fig. 5 is a front view of the same showing a tie in place thereon.

The invention is shown as comprising a form made of celluloid or similar material to imitate linen and having a white front surface similar to the surface of the collar under which it is to be worn. Having such surface the device can be cleaned very read- 11y by means of a sponge or even a rubber eraser. This form is shown as having at the bottom thereof a notch a for insertion under the head of the shirtstud. The dev ce can be of any desired shape at the two sides of this notch, but on the two outer edges are two other notches b which extend inwardly and have edges 6 at their inner ends, said edges diverging outwardly toward the bottom. ()n the upper and lower sides of the notches h are converging projections c and c affording a space into which the string of the tie can be inserted without drawing the tie through a hole, thus permitting the placing of the tie string in position very readily and quickly and without wrinkling. The upper ends of the two edges 5 converge toward each other as will be obvious.

Above the tops of the edges 6 is a comparatively wide flat surface (Z which, as appears in Fig. 1, shows clearly above the tie, and the parts being of linen-like material, gives the appearance of having linen back of the tie at this point. This surface is intended to come substantially to the top of the front of the collar and in addition to giving the appearance of a plain surface of linen it acts to hide any broken edge of the collar which may be present at the front. The top ed 'e of the form above this surface (Z is made sdanting upwardly at the corners, and is provided with teeth 6 extending inwardly along the top edge. These teeth are designed to engage in the fold of the collar at a distance back of the front edge andas the two surfaces of the collar normally come into contact at the fold they grip these points and the points in turn hold the collar in position so that when the collar button holes are enlarged by wear the device tends to hold the collar in its normal position independently of them. It will be seen that this is possible because there is only a fixed distance vertically between the notch a and the points of the teeth 6. Consequently when the notch is set over the collar button or shirt-stud the teeth will be forced into the fold of the collar. It is understood, of course, that a different sized form is used for each height of collar.

The device can be used as it has been described up to this point, but for the purpose of fixing the top of the tie and holding it firmly in position so as to prevent the top of it sinking down between the strings, the following arrangement is shown. A wire 7 of silver, aluminum, or any other desired metal is placed across the front of the form between the tops of the edges Z). For the purpose of holding the ends of this wire they are brought to the back of this form through the notches at the tops of these edges Z) and secured to the form at the back. This is done in the form illustrated by means of metal eyelets 9 extending through the form and gripping the ends of the wire under their reverse edges. They are easily applied, neat in appearance, and extremely inexpensive.

In using the device as shown with the wire thereon the string at the center of the tie is passed behind the tie form and passed into the notches b so that both ends come to the front. Then the tie is tied thereon in the usual way, being careful to draw up the last strand of the tie behind the wire, and over through the front loop of the tie. It is recommended that this end of the tie be passed twice around the vertical part before it is brought up behind the wire, but this is not. necessary. In using the device with a four-in-hand tie in this way, it will be seen that the wire holds the top loop up in position accurately so that it is always in the same place; also that the strings come through the notches and naturally widen out so as to cover the top and bottom notch as well as the end of the wire, and that any parts of the whole that show cannot be distinguished by the public from the collar itself. Consequently it is impossible to tell ordinarily whether the wearer has the device on or not. The tie being placed on the form, the latter is inserted in the collar, previously buttoned on the shirt, by placing the upper surface, including the teeth 6, up in under the fold and then flexing it enough to permit the head of the shirt-stud to enter the notch a. Then it will stay in position and there is no further difliculty with it.

In using it with a bow tie (Fig. 2) substantially the same description will apply. The string is brought around from the back on both sides through the notches, and during the process of tying, the outer strand, that is the one which comes over to form the vertical band of the tie, is passed behind the wire and down over the tie as in the other case. The same advantages are incident to the device when used for a bow tie, and in fact other forms of ties can be tied on it with equal facility. If it is desired to hold the tie down more firmly and provide a more graceful arrangement an additional wireF canbe used below the wire 7".

It will be seen, therefore, that the advantages above mentioned are secured by the use of such a tie form and that in addition thereto no complication is introduced in the tying of the tie, and in fact it can be made to result in economy in the manufacture of ties, because a material part of the length can be omitted. The device is extremely simple to manufacture, and if a party wears collars of different heights the expense of a set of them is a small matter.

Although I have illustrated and described only two forms of the invention and specified it as made of only one material, I am aware of the fact that the invention can be made in other forms, and that if desired any sort of material can be employed according to the taste of the wearer, the part that shows being capable of being used for ornamental purposes, if desired. Therefore, I do not wish to be limited in these respects, but

What I do claim is 1. As an article of manufacture, a collar and tie form having means for holding a tie or scarf thereon, and provided with a plane surface extending above said means and having teeth along the top thereof near the ends for engaging the collar.

2. As an article of manufacture, a collar and tie form comprising a thinsheet of material having near the edges thereof a pair of opposite surfaces inclined outwardly at the bottom at a distance inside the extreme edges for the reception of a tie string, said sheet of material extending above said first named edges at the center.

3. As an article of manufacture, a tie holder comprising a piece of sheet material having means near the bottom for receiving a shirt stud, a surface at the top for engaging under the fold of a turn-down collar, and notches in the sides for receiving the strings of a tie, said piece of sheet material being continuous up to the level of said surface at the top to afford a visible surface above the top of the tie.

4:. As an article of manufacture, a collar and tie form comprising a piece of sheet material having means at the bottom for receiving a shirt stud, notches in the sides for receiving the strings of a tie, and a wire extending across the front thereof from the top of one of said notches to the top of the other for supporting and limiting the top of the tie when tied.

5. As an article of manufacture, a collar and tie form comprising a piece of sheet material having a notch at the bottom for receiving a shirt stud, a surface at the top for engaging under the fold of a turned-down collar, and notches in the sides for receiving the strings of a tie, apair of eyelets secured through said material near the edges of the material above said notches, and a Wire extending from one eyelet on the rear through the top of the notch on that side, across the front into the other notch and to the other eyelet.

6. As an article of manufacture, a tie form comprising a piece of sheet material having notches in the sides for receiving the strings of a tie, and a member extending across the front thereof from one of said notches to the other for supporting the top of the tie.

7 As an article of manufacture, a tie form comprising a piece of sheet material having notches in the sides for receiving the strings of a tie, a member extending across the front thereof from one of said notches to the other for supporting the top of a tie, and a second member extending substantially across the tie form for supporting the tie at a lower point.

8. As an article of manufacture, a tie form comprising a piece of sheet material having notches in its sides for receiving the strings of a tie, a Wire secured to the back of said tie form at its opposite ends and extending through said notches along the front thereof, and a second wire located below the first Wire on the front of the tie form.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDWARD I). HOUSTON.

Witnesses ALBERT E. FAY, J. ELMER HALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of I'atentn. Washington, D. G. 

